# Song Yoon-ah

Song Yoon-ah (Korean: 송윤아, born June 7, 1973) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for starring in the film Jail Breakers (2002), as well as the television dramas Hotelier (2001), On Air (2008), Mama (2014), The K2 (2016), and Secret Mother (2018).

## Early life and education

Song Yoon-ah was born in Seoul, but spent her childhood in Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang Province. She has two elder brothers, the first one is a doctor.
While studying cultural anthropology as a freshman at Hanyang University, she was recommended by an older schoolmate to a modeling agency. Song made her entertainment debut when she won three awards at the KBS Super Talent Contest in 1995, and began appearing in magazine advertisements and as an extra on TV shows.

## Career

In 1998, Song rose to fame as the antagonist in Mister Q, playing the head of the design department in an underwear company who bullies the heroine; the trendy drama was a big hit, with a peak viewership rating of 45.3%. Over the next few years, Song became well known for her roles in TV dramas such as Paper Crane (1998), The Boss (1999), and Hotelier (2001).
Her first few films did not make a significant impression at the box office. But in late 2002, Song starred in one of the bigger commercial hits of the year, Jail Breakers with actors Sul Kyung-gu and Cha Seung-won. Her energetic performance in Kim Sang-jin's comedy was recognized with Best Supporting Actress trophies from the Blue Dragon Film Awards, the Chunsa Film Art Awards, and the Grand Bell Awards. Song next played an anthropologist from the National Institute of Scientific Investigation in the 2004 horror film Face.
In 2006, she reunited onscreen with Sol Kyung-gu in Lost in Love, a low-key melodrama directed by Choo Chang-min about two college friends who drift apart and reconnect over the course of ten years. Arang followed, in which Song played a detective on the trail of a serial killer; this was her first time to get top billing over a male costar (rookie actor Lee Dong-wook). But like Face, her previous project in the horror genre, Arang was a commercial and critical failure. Song returned to television with My Beloved Sister, in the title role of a graduate art student who grew up wealthy but must suddenly take on the responsibilities as head of the family and take care of her younger brothers after their father goes bankrupt then disappears.
Her next hit drama came in 2008 with On Air, a behind-the-scenes look at the Korean entertainment industry. Song was cast in the role of scribe Kim Eun-sook's alter ego, a successful, acerbic screenwriter who clashes egos with a top actress (played by Kim Ha-neul) while falling for a TV director (played by Park Yong-ha). Then in the 2009 thriller Secret, Song played the wife of a homicide detective—she becomes the prime suspect in a brutal murder he's investigating, while in the 2010 tearjerker Wedding Dress, her character is a widowed designer who is diagnosed with cancer and begins sewing the ultimate parting gift, a special dress for her young daughter's wedding, which she will never get to see.
After getting married in 2009 and giving birth in 2010, Song went on a five-year hiatus from acting. She became an adjunct professor and part-time lecturer at Seoul Arts College in 2010, as a faculty member of the Department of Performing Arts and the Department of Broadcasting, Entertainment and Visual Arts. Apart from occasional stints as an awards ceremony host (she hosted the Korean Film Awards from 2003 to 2010), in 2011 she also joined the cooking show Food Essay on cable channel Olive, and served as a judge on the first season of talent-reality show Korea's Got Talent.
Song made her acting comeback in the 2014 drama series Mama, which revolved around a terminally ill single mother's quest to find a loving family for her son before her impending death, leading to her befriending the current wife of a former lover. Her performance won Best Television Actress at the 51st Baeksang Arts Awards.
In 2016, Song played a villain in action drama The K2.
In 2017, she returned to the big screen and acted as a war correspondent in VR film Nine Days. The film is planned to exhibit in Sundance Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival and Venice Film Festival. The same year, she was cast in the film Stone, her first feature film in 7 years. And the film has invited to the 23rd Busan International Film Festival.
In 2018, Song was cast in SBS mystery family drama Secret Mother.
Song then starred in JTBC's 2020 pre-produced 19+ age-restricted series Graceful Friends.
Song was cast in Channel A's series for the first time with melodrama mystery Show Window: The Queen's House.
In 2023, Song reunited with Director Park Hye-ryeong for web show Song Yoon-ah by PDC.

## Other activities
### Philanthropy

On February 13, 2023, Song donated 50 million won to help 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake, by donating money through Korea's UNICEF Committee with participation in the Emergency Relief for Children Victims of the Earthquake in Turkey and Syria' programme along with Sul Kyung-gu.

## Personal life

Song married actor Sul Kyung-gu on May 28, 2009 in a Catholic church in Bangbae-dong followed by a reception at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company in Seoul. Both graduates of Hanyang University, they acted opposite each other in Jail Breakers (2002) and Lost in Love (2006). Their son Sol Seung-yoon was born on August 3, 2010.
In 2014, Song filed a defamation suit against 57 netizens who spread online rumors that she began having an extramarital affair with Sol in 2002 while he was still married to his first wife and was the cause of their divorce in 2006. Sol and Song have denied these rumors, stating that their relationship started in 2007.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1997 | 1818 (Profanity) | Hong Se-in | |
| 1998 | Zzang (The Best) | Song Na-young | |
| 2000 | A Masterpiece in My Life | Kang Yeo-kyung | |
| 2002 | Jail Breakers | Han Gyeong-sun | |
| 2004 | Face | Jung Sun-young | |
| 2006 | Lost in Love | Yeon-soo | |
| 2006 | Arang | So-young | |
| 2009 | Secret | Yoo Ji-yeon | |
| 2010 | Wedding Dress | Seo Go-eun | |
| 2018 | Nine Days | Kim Sun-joo / Park Seung-hee | Short film |
| 2019 | Innocent Witness | Kim Soo-in | Cameo |
| 2019 | Stone Skipping | Teacher Kim | |

### Television series

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1995 | Age of Individuality | | |
| 1995 | Brilliant People | | |
| 1996 | Tears of the Dragon | Ms. Jung, Yi Suk-beon's wife | |
| 1997 | Drama City: "The Road to Gorangpo" | | |
| 1997 | Hometown of Legends: "The Nine-Tailed Fox" | | |
| 1997 | Beyond the Horizon | | |
| 1998 | Love | Lee Hee-soo | |
| 1998 | Mister Q | Hwang Joo-ri | |
| 1998 | Cool Special: "The Eye of Terror" | Jung-in | |
| 1998 | Paper Crane | Cha Yeon-hee | |
| 1998 | Advocate | Jang Hye-mi | |
| 1999 | The Boss | Han Yeon-ji | |
| 1999 | You Don't Know My Feelings | Na Sook-ja | |
| 1999 | Love Story: "Lost Baggage" | Jung-in | |
| 2000 | Bad Friends | Ha Young-seo | |
| 2001 | Hotelier | Seo Jin-young | |
| 2001 | Sweet Bear | Han Jung-eun | |
| 2002 | The Present | Kim Hye-jin | |
| 2004 | Into the Storm | Cha Mi-seon | |
| 2005 | Hong Kong Express | Han Jung-yeon | |
| 2006 | My Beloved Sister | Yoon Seung-joo | |
| 2008 | On Air | Seo Young-eun | |
| 2010 | Secret Garden | Top star at giveaway event | Cameo (episode 2) |
| 2014 | Mama | Han Seung-hee | |
| 2015 | Assembly | Choi In-kyung | |
| 2016 | The K2 | Choi Yoo-Jin | |
| 2016 | KBS Drama Special: "Sweet Home" | Dr.Song | Cameo |
| 2018 | Secret Mother | Kim Yoon-jin | |
| 2018 | Room No. 9 | Park Hyun-jung | Cameo |
| 2020 | Graceful Friends | Nam Jung-hae | |
| 2021 | Show Window: The Queen's House | Han Sun-joo | |

### Television show

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1998 | Go! Our Heaven | Host | |
| 1999 | Super TV Sunday Is Fun - Song Yoon-ah's Summer Escape | Host | |
| 2011 | Food Essay | Host | |
| 2011 | Korea's Got Talent | Judge | Season 1 |
| 2011 | The Miracle of Kangaroo Mother Care | Narrator | Documentary |
| 2012 | Spring Hasn't Come Yet: One Year After the Earthquake in Japan | Narrator | Documentary |
| 2014 | Hope TV SBS | Host | |

### Web shows

| Year | Title | Role | Ref. |
| 2023 | Song Yoon-ah by PDC | Host | |

### Hosting

| Year | Title | Notes |
| 1998 | Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival - Big Concert Musical Journey | with Kim Byun-chan |
| 1999 | Korean Video and Records Awards | with Shin Dong-ho |
| 2000 | 36th Baeksang Arts Awards | with Shin Dong-ho |
| 2000 | SBS Drama Awards | with Yoo Jung-hyun |
| 2002 | Golden Disk Awards | with Shin Dong-ho |
| 2002 | SBS Drama Awards | with Yoo Jung-hyun |
| 2003 | 2nd Korean Film Awards | with Ahn Sung-ki |
| 2003 | SBS Drama Awards | with Yoo Jung-hyun |
| 2004 | 3rd Korean Film Awards | with Ahn Sung-ki |
| 2005 | 4th Korean Film Awards | with Ahn Sung-ki |
| 2006 | 5th Korean Film Awards | with Ahn Sung-ki |
| 2007 | 6th Korean Film Awards | |
| 2008 | 7th Korean Film Awards | |
| 2010 | 8th Korean Film Awards | |

## Discography

| Year | Song title | Notes |
| 2002 | "Pink Lipstick" | Track from Jail Breakers OST |
| 2008 | "Shadow" | Track from On Air OST |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 1995 | KBS Super Talent Contest | Gold Award | — | Won |
| 1995 | KBS Super Talent Contest | Photogenic Award | — | Won |
| 1995 | KBS Super Talent Contest | Julia Award | — | Won |
| 1998 | SBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actress | Mister Q | Won |
| 1998 | KBS Drama Awards | Popularity Award, Actress | Paper Crane | Won |
| 1999 | 35th Baeksang Arts Awards | Most Popular Actress (TV) | Mister Q | Won |
| 1999 | MBC Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actress | The Boss | Won |
| 2000 | SBS Drama Awards | Big Star Award | Love Story "Lost Baggage" | Won |
| 2000 | 45th Information and Communication Day | Prime Minister's Commendation | — | Won |
| 2001 | MBC Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress | Hotelier, Sweet Bear | Won |
| 2002 | Korea Best Dressed Swan Awards | Recipient | — | Won |
| 2002 | 23rd Blue Dragon Film Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Jail Breakers | Won |
| 2003 | 11th Chunsa Film Art Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Jail Breakers | Won |
| 2003 | 40th Grand Bell Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Jail Breakers | Won |
| 2004 | SBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actress in a Special Planning Drama | Into the Storm | Won |
| 2004 | SBS Drama Awards | Top 10 Stars | Into the Storm | Won |
| 2006 | 4th Korea Fashion World Awards | Best Dressed, Movie Actress category | — | Won |
| 2006 | MBC Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actress | My Beloved Sister | Nominated |
| 2007 | 3rd Andre Kim Best Star Awards | Best Star Award | — | Won |
| 2007 | MBC Entertainment Awards | Achievement Award | | Won |
| 2008 | Cosmopolitan | Fun Fearless Female | — | Won |
| 2008 | SBS Drama Awards | Grand Prize (Daesang) | On Air | Nominated |
| 2008 | SBS Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress | On Air | Won |
| 2008 | SBS Drama Awards | Top 10 Stars | On Air | Won |
| 2009 | 4th Andre Kim Best Star Awards | Female Star Award | — | Won |
| 2010 | 2nd Korea Jewelry Awards | Diamond Award | — | Won |
| 2014 | 3rd APAN Star Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries | Mama | Nominated |
| 2014 | 27th Grimae Awards | Best Actress | Mama | Won |
| 2014 | MBC Drama Awards | Grand Prize (Daesang) | Mama | Nominated |
| 2014 | MBC Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Special Project Drama | Mama | Won |
| 2015 | 51st Baeksang Arts Awards | Best Actress (TV) | Mama | Won |
| 2015 | KBS Drama Awards | Excellence Awards, Actress in a Mid-length Drama | Assembly | Nominated |
| 2018 | SBS Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Daily and Weekend Drama | Secret Mother | Won |